Has it ever happened to you that something inside of you tells you to stop when making a decision that matters? This little voice in your head starts to chime in, and slowly bit, indeed, doubt starts to creep into your head. The voice tries to stop you by unleashing a barrage of self-ridicule. Have you heard this kind of self-talk?
In 2018, I wanted to start my personal branding venture where I would work with young professionals like myself. The aim was to help people to use social media and establish powerful personal brands on the web. Even before I started with the venture, all sorts of things began popping up in my head, such as:
- You don’t have any experience
- What if you fail?
- What if you lose money?
- Who will hire you?
- Isn’t personal branding supposed to be done by yourself?
- This idea is dumb
- What do you know about running a business?
- You are twenty-three; you are just a dumb rookie
- You don’t know enough to start a business
You get the idea. This kind of self-talk led me to doubt myself and question my abilities. I was finished even before I started because of this loser BS that was going in my head. I gave up and went to work at a company. But somehow, the idea never died. I kept returning to it because I worked at an influencer marketing firm. Every day I came across people who were social media influencers in their domains, people with powerful personal brands.
In October 2019, I attended Speakers Institute’s Bootcamp; a three-day seminar focused on helping people become influencers. I met more people running their businesses, earning money, and writing their books. The head coach and founder of the program, Sam Cawthorn, has an incredible story of his own, and he made it clear that what I was thinking was indeed possible. But first, I needed to master my self-talk.
It’s a fact that if you believe something isn’t possible, you definitely won’t make it happen. Something about what you say to yourself impacts your efforts in any endeavor. This is why we always need to be aware of what we tell ourselves in any situation. Hearing oneself can be a game-changer.
You need to stop it immediately whenever you hear the self-talk causing doubts. These rationalizations are meant to keep you where you are right now. You need to listen to the excuses the mind makes for not taking action or postponing something. All this is white noise in your head that needs to be heard but not listened to.
We need to believe in ourselves and our abilities. We must have faith that we can figure out any problems that may arise during our journey. That can be extremely freeing if we realize that we don’t need to have all the answers from the beginning.
It is also important to understand that mastering self-talk isn’t a one-time activity. It is a lifelong process. I struggle with it every day because my first instinct is always to find ways to avoid doing something altogether. Even as I write this and know it about myself, it relieves me as I can overcome anything.
I raised my game from a personal branding venture to a business based around adult education and self-development. Knowing what I know about myself, I can accomplish almost anything. I aim to empower millions over the next 15 years to become better versions of themselves. I dream bigger dreams and want to discover the depths of human potential.
Next time you make an important decision and the little voice in your head chimes in, treat it as white noise and take a leap of faith. In the long run, you will thank yourself for doing so.